A Broken Man
by Living Paradox
Summary: Summary would spoil the story. Naruto is seventeen. Rated for language and violence.
1. Chapter 1

**Author Notes: Hello everyone. This is not a yaoi fic of any kind, but it was an awesome idea I got. I figure if I get everything out of my head, I'll be able to focus better on each individual fanfic. A summary would spoil the actual story, so there isn't one other than Naruto is sort of a villain this time around.**

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**Naruto:** The blond demon container had turned seventeen not long ago, and he had heard of Konoha's near destruction by Orochimaru. Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, had died, and Naruto felt just a twinge of sadness. He wasn't one to show his emotions anymore. After his rejection while living in that senseless Hell and being ignored, the blond just stopped. "And to think I hadn't left sooner," he said aloud. Naruto walked through the fog and up to a wooden gate, but a man tried to stop him.

"Uh, excuse me sir," the guard spoke as Naruto got halfway through. He raised his head, and in turn the straw hat he was wearing to reveal blood red eyes. The man was frightened out of his mind before fainting from Naruto's genjutsu.

"The same old fear I see," he said before continuing his walk. A black and red cloak covered most of Naruto's features minus the bottom half of his legs. "I can hardly believe it's already been five years since I broke out of here." He fixed his hat again so that the white strips blocked all possible side views. A thin, long, red bell hung in front of and a bit to the right of his forehead. Every step caused a tiny _"ting-ting"_ to go off. "At least they managed to survive that slithering bastard. It's too bad about old man Hokage though. I would have spared him the most words out of anyone, well, except for maybe Kakashi-Sensei." Naruto eventually came to the main part of the village. _How nostalgic,_ he thought. Bile could be tasted in his mouth, but he swallowed it in disdain. Perhaps he knew it, perhaps he didn't, but Kakashi had spotted him from a rooftop a ways off.

Naruto entered his old favorite ramen shop. "Yes sir, what would you like?" Teuchi asked. If anyone was nicer to him than Sarutobi, it was old man Teuchi.

"I'll take one of everything minus the seafood, and here's the money," Naruto said in a slightly deeper and modified voice. His face was still perfectly hidden except for his chin and mouth. The whisker marks he had were still impossible to see as well. Naruto completely suppressed his chakra. Everything rode on him not being discovered until the right moment. "I've been traveling for a while, so I'm more hungry than I first thought possible."

"Well, I'll start you off with a miso sir. Enjoy," the shop owner told him. Naruto did have to control his eating speed. Remaining hidden until he wished to be seen was the objective. He had just finished his first as the bowl of barbeque pork was put in front of him. The blond sipped his broth silently, his old way being almost obnoxiously loud, before placing the bowl on the upper counter. "I shouldn't ask, but where all have you been traveling?"

A hawk screeched in the air above Sasuke. "Kakashi? What does he want?" the sulking raven asked. About ten minutes later, he spotted his teacher outside Ichiraku's. "What, you invited me to lunch?" Naruto froze when he heard that voice. _Damn, Kakashi-Sensei hasn't lost his touch. Oh well,_ Naruto thought before finishing his final bowl.

"No, but I am waiting on someone," the white-haired man replied. Kurenai and Asuma stood in front of him. Kakashi turned to see the once filled seat vacant. The two across from him looked suspicious, and he gave a nod before they zipped off.

"What was that all about?" Sasuke asked impatiently.

"Oh, nothing, but I've gotta go now. I'll catch up with you later Sasuke," Kakashi replied as he walked off after Asuma and Kurenai. His student was very suspicious however, and he chose to follow not long after.

Naruto had just crossed the wooden bridge spanning a small canal, and he continued along the stone walkway before Kurenai and Asuma stepped in front of him. _Well, I tried,_ Naruto thought as he noticed them.

"That getup," Asuma began with a partially chewed cigarette in his mouth. "You're not from around here are you? Why are you in this village?"

"It certainly has been a while Miss Kurenai, Asuma," Naruto replied courteously and yet as though he didn't care.

"The fact that you know our names must mean that you're a shinobi formerly of this village," Asuma spoke. Naruto moved his hand up to his hat, nails not polished in black like the other Akatsuki members. When he raised it just a bit, Kurenai and Asuma were unnerved by his eyes. They had never seen the Kyuubi's eyes, and nor did they know that Naruto could use his powers. Naruto completely removed his hat and held it by two fingers at his side. The two Jounin in front of him were stunned by the nostalgically blond hair which had now grown quite long, and they noticed his sliced headband.

"Who the Hell are you?" Kurenai asked with a serious look on. Naruto grinned and giggled a bit.

"I suppose you wouldn't recognize me like this," he began. "Perhaps after this though, you will." Naruto moved his left hand over his eyes. "Considering how powerful his chakra is and how intermingled it is with mine, suppressing the chakra takes a bit more strength than it did those years ago." He dropped his hand slowly, and Kurenai and Asuma's faces became further stretched with fear. "It is good to see you, my old senseis," Naruto told them with a small smile and his revealed cerulean eyes.

"Uzumaki Naruto," Asuma said in a flat and matter of fact tone. "God you have guts showing your face around here." Kurenai just stood stunned. "You left five years ago, and you brought more than ten ANBU to their graves in the process. You're a high level, S-Class criminal listed on the front page of the Bingo Book and are referenced throughout the whole thing. You're a rogue ninja wanted in nearly every country, believed to be guilty of several espionage schemes, and known to have killed the Tsuchikage last year, why what a record you've made yourself…Naruto."

"Hm," Naruto hummed lowly and quietly. It was just a short acknowledgement. "It seems that everyone's opinion of me hasn't changed in the slightest; that's good to know."

"How do you figure?" Kurenai asked him.

"Because if people's opinions of me had improved, it means I could have stayed with a hope of being acknowledged," Naruto answered flatly. "Basically, it reassures me that I was right to leave. Now, I will warn you now: you don't want interfere with me, not yet anyway. It's not like I _want_ to kill you."

"You've become a bit twisted over the years Naruto," Asuma told him before drawing out his chakra blades.

"I guess I won't be going anywhere without a fight," Naruto mused with a smile as he closed his eyes. He reopened them to reveal Kyuubi's, and a wind seemed to blow from him, shaking the leaves from the branches of nearby trees and sending them into the flowing water below. Naruto cast away his hat, and the second a "tiiinnngg" resounded from the bell, he sprang at Asuma with frightening speed. The man dodged his punch, but he watched in fear as Naruto's slitted eyes followed him closely. They were creepy in fact the way they simply flowed to match his speed and movement. Asuma decided not to take any chances and swiped at Naruto with his right blade, appearing to just miss the blond's face. "Huh?" Naruto asked as a cut appeared on his right cheek just above his final thickened whisker scar. A single droplet of blood escaped it before the wound closed up. Blue chakra now glowed around Asuma's knives. "Ah, I had forgotten who the wind master was in this village."

"That healing, so fast," was all that the man could say.

"I've always healed quickly. Of course, you can thank the Kyuubi who is sealed inside me for that," Naruto replied as he set his second foot back down to fully regain balance. "That was the main reason that no one in this Hell hole ever liked me except for the old man. Actually, I had come here to pay my respects. He was the only one who really ever paid attention to me. All the rest of you wanted was for me to die on the battlefield due to lack of experience from training that Kakashi-Sensei purposely deprived me of. Anyway, I still assume you won't let me see his grave unless I nearly kill you and leave you unable to move."

"You'd be right," Asuma answered before charging him. Naruto completely undid the top of his cloak and brought his arms out of their sleeves before doing a backward handspring to dodge Asuma's attack. He only wore a shinobi's armor shirt under the cloak, but nothing else covered his top half. The blond drew a two-foot blade and sent his own wind chakra into it before landing on his feet and instantly charging at his opponent. Asuma used both hands to block the attack, but he slid backwards until he dug his feet in hard. "This strength, it's inhuman." Naruto smiled. This was barely half power for him.

"That's because, according to the village populace, I'm not human," Naruto said tauntingly as he smiled at Asuma. "Now, I know you two missed my flight from this place, so I will let you see just how close Kyuubi and I have become." Naruto used his free left hand to pull the cloud-covered cloak off of himself. When it was discarded, Kurenai and Asuma became terrified at Naruto's appearance. Nine red tails uncurled themselves from his body. "On that night," Naruto began again. "I only had one tail, but I was still mercilessly attacked and beaten like garbage!" He kicked Asuma hard in the stomach and sent him flying a ways.

"Asuma!" Kurenai screamed before turning to Naruto and flipping through hand signs. Naruto watched as her form seemed to spin and twist away. _Ah, her genjutsu,_ he thought. A tree grew behind him and ensnared his arms, legs, and body, and Kurenai began coming out of the tree with a kunai in her right hand. "Let's end this shall we?" she called as she brought it down towards Naruto. Suddenly, she was the one stuck within the hold of her own tree. The blond stood in front of her. "A genjutsu reflection?"

"Genjutsu of that level isn't worth a damned against me," Naruto spoke quietly as he raised his blade, and Kurenai bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. Her illusion suddenly disappeared, and she dodged the blade, losing just a few of her long hairs. The now half-man half-fox wasn't sloppy however. He quickly followed up with a shattering leg thrust. Kurenai used her arms to block his foot, but she couldn't match his strength at all, and she was flung out into the water with a yell.

"Kurenai!" Asuma yelled as he sat up halfway.

"I wouldn't be watching her if I were you!" Naruto yelled as he closed the distance between them. He raised his right leg high, but Asuma managed to dodge the rock-shattering downward kick. "Hm, not bad…but," the blond spoke as he watched Asuma skid away. Naruto quickly tossed his blade up in the air and began forming water-element hand signs. "Water Style: Water Shark Palm Jutsu." A second voice said the words as well, and Naruto's water column was blocked by another. "This timing…and that chakra…."

"This is the end of the line for you…Naruto," the white-haired Kakashi said as he held a kunai in front of the blond's neck. Naruto slowly turned his head and saw the familiar Sharingan, but he didn't move his arms an inch. One of Kakashi's clones retrieved Kurenai from the water as Naruto's blade fell from the sky and stuck into the ground next to his right foot. The handle was six inches long, and the hilt was in the shape of the nine-tailed fox. Asuma froze, and suddenly everything was still and quiet, but Naruto's heart didn't skip a single beat out of fear, and Kakashi could sense it.

"Not that I'm not happy to see you, but what are you doing here?" Asuma asked Kakashi.

"Well you know, I asked you two to handle this guy outside Ichiraku's earlier, but I guess I got a little worried," the silver-haired man replied. "And now I know why. Such a hateful and yet sad aura threw me for a bit until I could feel that chakra."

"Even though I had suppressed it?" Naruto asked quietly without moving. "I'm impressed, but that still shouldn't have been enough to convince you. You were still far too young to be able to remember and recognize Kyuubi's chakra, and ours are only halfway fused. When I was your student, it was hardly even sensible."

"You're right," Kakashi spoke as he tensed his blade just a bit. "I didn't know it was you until about now. Now that you're in check, mind telling us why you returned, especially now of all times?"

"I smell anger Kakashi-Sensei," Naruto commented. "I can't blame you though. Some of those ANBU that night must have been close comrades." Kakashi's knife now touched the side of his neck. "I apologize, but I wasn't going to just die an honorless martyr, and the village simply refused to let me have a reprieve. All I actually wanted that night was some time alone, but when I was attacked, I knew there was nothing left. You animals burnt my apartment on top of it, so what did I have left to come home to?" Naruto asked angrily, but he calmed back down. "Sorry, back on the point, I came here to pay respects to old man Hokage and to maybe get in a few words with old 'friends,' but that won't be happening now I guess. It was a bad idea; I knew it, but hope is quite alluring. Even someone as broken as I am falls into its trap once in a while."

"Sorry Naruto," Kakashi began. "But I don't believe your sob story." He swung his knife at his former student, but Naruto was gone and behind him with his blade in hand in an instant. He now held his own killing tool to Kakashi's neck.

"Answer me this, my old sensei," Naruto spoke calmly. "Why has no one died yet?" The silver-haired man's eyes went wide before Naruto kicked him hard out onto the water. He followed however; Kakashi, he knew, was no pushover, and he wouldn't go down quite that easily. Asuma and Kurenai in turn followed the blond. Out of nowhere however, a blur raced from the trees at Naruto. He easily sensed it however and caught the fist of an angry Uchiha heir. Sasuke was terrified, and Asuma and Kurenai had frozen. "It's been too long…Sasuke," Naruto spoke in as cheerful a voice as he could muster to reflect the "good old days."

"It can't be you," the boy stated in disbelief. Naruto suppressed Kyuubi's chakra once more and showed Sasuke his blue eyes. "No…way." Their reunion was cut short however as a Chidori came racing toward Naruto. He let go of Sasuke and nimbly dodged Kakashi's left arm.

"Get back Sasuke!" Kakashi commanded. He summoned a Shadow Clone who held out a kunai and stood in front of Sasuke ready to defend him. Naruto skidded on the water's surface just a tad before stopping, but he was forced to dodge Asuma's attack from behind as well. "Asuma, Kurenai, stay back. He's out of your league!"

"I'm afraid he's right on that point," Naruto and his now instantly formed Shadow Clones spoke. His Shadow clones restrained both Asuma and Kurenai before tying their hands with a restraining jutsu. After his clones were done, Naruto dispelled them.

_I didn't even see a hand sign,_ Kakashi thought to himself in fright. _Just how far have you come…Naruto?_ The blond in question stopped once more and turned to Kakashi and Sasuke with his red eyes blazing. "If you think I'll just let you kill Sasuke, you're dead wrong Naruto," the white-haired man told him before charging another Chidori. Naruto sighed and formed a striped Rasengan. Blue and red ran through it evenly.

"With your Sharingan, you should be much more of a match for me, Kakashi-Sensei," Naruto told him. "Although, as strong as you are, Itachi seemed far stronger when I fought him." Kakashi and Sasuke both froze. Naruto had fought against The Betrayer? "Perhaps a blast from your teacher will remind you of just who I am." The passive-looking blond charged at Kakashi who also flew at _him._ When the maximum-strength lightning blade met the violently spinning orb in Naruto's hand, both of them were temporarily stopped, but Naruto smiled as his chakra literally ate through his teacher's. He let the rest of his attack hit Kakashi's stomach though, and the man was sent flying until it became apparent that it was a substitution. "You taught me to see through deception Kakashi-Sensei," the blond called out. "Just show yourself." Naruto was stopped however as his former instructor pulled him under the water by his feet. "Idiot," he said before dipping under the surface.

Kakashi drew another kunai and went for Naruto's neck, but the blond remained passive and simply formed another Rasengan. This one he let blow up in his teacher's face, and the shockwave sent a tower of water into the air as both males were propelled to the surface. "You certainly have gotten better Naruto," Kakashi said from afar. "But you still can't beat me," he said from behind the blond. The one further out was a clone apparently.

"You also taught me not to underestimate my opponent Sensei," Naruto said with a smile before leaning back to face the silver-haired man and turning upside down. He pointed a finger towards Kakashi's shoulder, and a harsh jet of wind shattered the bone plate, causing his teacher to stop his attack and back off. They both landed on their feet, Kakashi panting, and Naruto not even breaking a sweat. "By the way," he began again. "My chakra types are fire, wind, and water. Are you impressed?"

"By scum like you?" Kakashi asked. "Not really, but you are strong; I'll give you that. Just what are you after anyway? Sasuke? Jiraiya? Plunder? Out with it before I get really mad."

"I came here to pay my respects and maybe talk with a few of the people I knew like you," Naruto replied impatiently. "But it would seem that none of you have changed even in the slightest. Not a single one of you except the Third or maybe Pervy Sage-Sensei gave a damn about me. How do you think I felt wandering around in the wilderness knowing I was hated, alone, and had nowhere to go?" Naruto let a single tear escape his left eye, but he turned it to steam with his fire chakra. "You people sicken me to no end, so I don't have any more business here. I'll leave if you want. Itachi and the rest of Akatsuki are far more accommodating than you anyway." Sasuke sprang at him with his own bright Chidori blazing. Naruto turned and bent down, touching the water. He formed a sword with the water and turned it to ice before swinging at Sasuke. His Chidori was an even match for Naruto's sword, and when the lightning died, the blade in Naruto's hand shattered. "You of all people should have cared Sasuke," Naruto spoke before picking up his previous best friend. "I told Itachi what I knew about your clan's history and my own, and he said that we must have been the best of friends." The Uchiha's eyes widened. "Ya, it sucks having no family. But did you care about me at all? No, you just went about your obsession with killing that guy. Here's a piece of news for you. I KILLED HIM FOR YOU!" Naruto was panting in fury, and Sasuke was limp in his hand. He gazed at Naruto as his brain tried to process the information.

"That's right you self-centered egotistical jackass," Naruto continued on. "I got your clan's vengeance. What do you say to that?"

"You're lying," Sasuke replied. "I couldn't touch Itachi when he came for you; there's no way in Hell you could have beaten him all by yourself." Naruto became enraged.

"I can't even begin to say all the filthy, mean crap about you that I want to Sasuke," Naruto told him. "Neither of us had families, both of us were alone, and we were on the same fucking team." The blond was now openly crying as he threw Sasuke onto the water. "Why? Why is it that I'm the one hated while you're praised like some church boy? Why is it that I can't gain adoration or even a kind word from you people? Why is it that you wouldn't even lift a finger to try and understand me when you knew that I was having a similar problem. The only difference between us is that you have anger towards the one who removed your family from you. The one who did that to me was Kyuubi, and I can't do a damned thing about it. You know what? I completed your dumb vengeance quest. If you want freaking proof, here's Itachi's right eye." Naruto pulled a small sealed glass from his pants pocket. Indeed, Itachi's Mangekyo showed. The blond threw it hard into Sasuke's stomach, and the glass shattered.

"That's enough," Kakashi said forcefully as he held a kunai to Naruto's neck and grabbed his right arm. The blond just cried. "It's over, Naruto."

"No, it isn't," the boy replied. "You filthy and arrogant Leaf ninja won't kill me. I won't be left to rot like some dead deer by you dogs. All this time, I've been the one living in Hell while you enjoyed your happiness. If I die, then it is because I will it!" Naruto grabbed Kakashi's wrist and flipped the man over his body. The now frightened Jounin let go, but Naruto followed up with a bone crushing punch to his chest. "Just leave me alone if you won't acknowledge me," the blond said as a tear rolled down his face. Kakashi was flung into the stone wall of the canal, and he passed out. "Sasuke," Naruto spoke quietly as he turned toward the Uchiha. "Just live a normal life and peacefully rebuild your clan. I can't stay here anymore. It's too fucking painful."

"Then let me put you out of your misery," a familiar voice said caringly from behind Naruto. He turned in time to see Jiraiya's face before his hand pierced Naruto's torso and tore into his heart. The Pervy-Sage's face was a solemn one. He didn't want to kill Naruto, but he couldn't watch his former student tear himself apart either. Jiraiya had formed a special set of hand signs before striking Naruto. It was a final sealing technique that shut off chakra flow to the damaged region. Naruto cried and hugged his teacher as the pain washed over him. His blood flowed into the water, and Kurenai and Asuma got up after his jutsu had been released and saw Naruto's tails drooping in the water as he embraced Jiraiya. The water flowed red, and Kakashi and Sasuke were both stunned by the sight. The white-haired Jounin was in extreme pain, but he was too mystified by this spectacle.

"I'm sorry Ero-Sennin," Naruto wept. Kyuubi was screaming at him to get away, to heal somehow, but he resisted. The blond was in so much emotional pain. Death was now approaching him. Freedom was getting nearer, and relief of this world drew ever closer. Naruto picked his head up and smiled at Jiraiya with his former cerulean-eyed, childish wonder stare. "Thank you…Sensei," Naruto breathed before the last bit of life drained from his body. His eyes dulled as his heart stopped completely, and the water under their feet flowed with his blood. The blond's arms finally fell, and the red Akatsuki ring he wore fell to the bottom of the canal. Jiraiya removed his now very bloody hand from his former student. He looked down to see the seal dissolving, but no chakra flowed within Naruto. The Kyuubi had died along with him. _"Thank you,"_ was all that resounded in his mind…that whispered _"thank you."_

"Is he…" Kakashi began.

"Dead," Jiraiya replied. "He's in a better place now. Naruto deserves a new chance at life. Maybe he'll be reincarnated, or maybe the gods will let him into heaven. I just hope he's finally happy." A tear fell from his eye as well as he held the limp body of Naruto in his hands. "He was right Kakashi," Jiraiya spoke calmly. "Everyone else forced this life on him; he didn't choose it. All he ever wanted was acknowledgement and praise, and he never even got that much from this place which he still loved even though the village put him through Hell on a daily basis. Come on, let's go bury him, secretly somewhere in the woods, deep enough so that wolves won't ravage his body. But we have to remember he is buried there, and we can't forget what truly happened."

"I can't believe we were so wrong for all these years," Kurenai said guiltily as she helped support Kakashi. "The elders and villagers won't believe this story."

"It's fine," Sasuke spoke up as he held his older brother's preserved eye in his hand. He crushed it before dropping the slimy remains into the water. "It's better that no one else finds out about this. Naruto meant to give us a personal message, and I think I understand it now. He still cared about us more than himself even when he was falling down a bottomless pit, and we took him for granted, but he forgave us anyway. Let's just bury him, but we have to promise to visit his grave once every month. We owe him that much."

"Ya, I agree," Asuma ended with a look of regret on his face. Kakashi nodded, and they all went off into the woods, Naruto smiling in Jiraiya's arms as he carried the dead boy.

**Author Notes: Ya, it's short, but I felt that I needed to write this. Review if you want. This is a one chapter deal.**


	2. Important Message

Hey faithful readers.

I'm a family friend of Paradox...

Unfortunately, just two months ago, your author passed away at the age of 17 years 312 days at 4:27 A.M. It was unknown to me at the time he wrote so many fanfictions on this website (or that he wrote so much for a hobby at all). He and I took our english classes together, and I always was astounded when I peer-critiqued/analyzed his work be it a poem, argumentative piece, or philosophical positionings. I've spent the last twelve days reading his stories, and I was honestly shocked at some of his comments. I didn't know he was borderline bi-sexual/plain gay, not that I hold it against him. Some of our best friends are, both boys and girls.

But I'm trailing away here. Paradox and I were performing in a choral-orchestral performance in Carnegie Hall when he collapsed on stage. In a matter of hours, stress, scans, and worry, we (his family and other close friends there too) were told he wouldn't live through the night. He'd contracted adolescent small-cell lung cancer coupled with a virus that had been eating away at the cells in his chest without any signs. Both of his parents smoked, but the doctrs say we can't blame them. Adolescent lung cancer has several genetic factors involved...but in a matter of seven hours, I'd lost a dear friend who had devoted his life to readers like you, issues like human-rights, videogame animation/design, and most of all music. I and the chorus which we'd auditioned for performed his funeral mass shortly after his death. I saw that he inserted some great musical works into his stories (he was always doing crazy things to blend his interests), so I feel it fitting to end his existence on FF by providing his dedicated readers with the music by which he departed from this world. These are not recordings of our chorus, but they are just as emotional as we were during the procession. These songs were selected because they were some of his favorites, and they fit the occassion. Please listen in remembrance of Living Paradox. All of the links below are "(you tube)" with each link below added to the end.

.com/watch?v=hQTMrs0DMsI&feature=related

.com/watch?v=nydD17m6Tn8

.com/watch?v=iWtcvmSLxy4

.com/watch?v=tV29TqNc4rM&feature=related

.com/watch?v=J5MoZlNVG-s&feature=related

.com/watch?v=J5MoZlNVG-s&feature=related (he and I are in this one)

In remembrance of my friend, I can TRY to continue his works to fitting ends...if you want, or we can preserve what exists in memory. Reply back with revies, as they've been rerouted to my email adress. For now at least, goodbye everyone.


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